50th Anniversary of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

50th Anniversary of the Cotswolds Area of Outstandinf Natural Beauty

2016 marks the 50th anniversary of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and there’s lots planned to mark the occasion.

In 1966, the same year in which England won the Football World Cup, the Cotswolds was officially designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB): recognising it as one of the country’s finest landscapes and a place to be looked after by future generations.

Whatever the national soccer teams’ fluctuating fortunes, the Cotswolds remains a byword for quintessential rural England at its best, the famous limestone of its landscapes, buildings and dry stone walls creating a unique warmth and harmony across the region.

The largest of the family of 38 AONBs in England and Wales, the Cotswolds also embraces a rare diversity of landscapes and heritage: from wild flower grasslands to ancient beech woods; the giddy scarp to hidden valleys; Neolithic long barrows to historic houses and gardens; drop-dead gorgeous villages to market towns.

A new book featuring stunning pictures that tells the living story of the Cotswolds landscapes will be a highlight of 2016 celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of the AONB with many special events being planned too.

Sharing the Moment

Throughout the year the Cotswolds Conservation board are holding a number of celebratory events, so everyone can share the moment to discover more about our beautiful landscape and learn how to protect it for future generations.

Events and activities include: an art exhibition, 1960’s themed tea parties, photography competition, art classes and an online video and photography archive that captured the Cotswolds past and present.

www.escapetothecotswolds.org.uk

Saltridge Woods (Credit: Ken Long)